Urban farm appeals for help so they can support Doncaster community groups

Warren Draper, aged 51, from Bentley is the managing director of Bentley Urban Farm and is asking for financial donations to replace tools that were stolen from the farm this January.

He has single-handedly been tending to the farm in order to keep it operational but wants to expand the farms reach into the local community.

He said: “I have been working different jobs to keep it going such as photography and art but due to coronavirus anything that I get paid for is now impossible.

“We have been giving a lot of the fresh food we grow to the Manna soup kitchen and making veg boxes for people in need.

“But long term we need money to keep those services going.”

Warren is trying to raise a total of £3,249 and with that money, he will be able to replace stolen tools, deliver food boxes to people in self-isolation and also invest in the farm's future.

He hopes to use this time to create videos at the farm to share on social media with the aim of showing people how to grow their own food at home in the garden.

Warren said: “We need to increase our food security - we have all seen that the supermarket model is not strong and shelves have been empty.

“I think we really need to change our relationship to food and hopefully the farm will be able to help people do that.”

Warren wants people to start thinking about how they can use their garden space to grow fruit and vegetables as a way to be more resilient in times of crisis.

Bentley Urban Farm usually offers a variety of classes and workshops on the subject of food poverty which have been halted due to social distancing guidance but he is hoping that they will be able to start up again later this year.

If you can donate you can on the Spacehive page here.

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